


spin the bottle

by jabedalien



Category: Community (TV)
Genre: Alcohol Abuse/Alcoholism, Drinking, Drinking Games, Explicit Language, Explicit Sexual Content, First Kiss, Fluff, Food Issues, M/M, One Shot, Oral Sex, Spin the Bottle, a little bit, and i do what i want with it, jeff winger is a softie on the inside and we all know it, jk i added a chapter so not really a one shot, tagging them just in case, this is my rare pair, try to make me stop adding to this, you can pry the two of them from my cold dead hands
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-07
Updated: 2020-07-23
Packaged: 2021-03-02 18:28:08
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 8
Words: 18,762
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24051349
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/jabedalien/pseuds/jabedalien
Summary: “Jeff, you already agreed to the game and spun the bottle, rules are rules. Plus this is probably my only chance to kiss the leading man."
Relationships: Abed Nadir/Jeff Winger, IMPLIED abed/annie and abed/troy
Comments: 102
Kudos: 328





	1. Lessons in Drinking Games

**Author's Note:**

> Hey guys! I'm facing a lot of writer's block with my other fic (if you haven't read, its Trobed and I currently have 3 chapters up). I really wanna finish it but I'm not sure how just yet! So instead I will be giving you all a very brief Jeff/Abed oneshot that's been living in my notes app for a few months now. I cleaned it up a bit to put on here but it was really just me giving Jeff/Abed a try.
> 
> Also “Wow, Pierce isn’t in this?!” is my replacement for “ugh, Britta’s in this?”. I truly just didn’t feel like having to write Pierce into this fic.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “Jeff, you already agreed to the game and spun the bottle, rules are rules. Plus this is probably my only chance to kiss the leading man,”

Finals week had come to a close, and somehow the group had made it through yet again. They decided to celebrate with a night in at Troy, Abed and Annie’s apartment, which seemed like a good idea at first. Everyone showed up but Pierce, who had gotten caught cheating on a final for what had to be the tenth time in his long history at Greendale. They ordered pizza, and Jeff jokingly suggested a dice roll, but Abed volunteered to get it before the sentence had even left Jeff’s mouth. As always though, Abed wasn’t going to go down there without asking everyone for money. 

They had beer that Troy kept in the fridge for when he wanted to feel like a grownup, a bottle of scotch Jeff had brought, and a handle of cheap vodka Britta had brought along. Eating pizza and drinking turned into just drinking, which turned into everyone dancing with Jeff just watching them until he suggested they get Troy and Abed’s drinking board game out.

Abed took the huge paper game board out of a cabinet, laid it one the table and gave each of them a plastic game piece he’d clearly pulled from some old fantasy game.

“Why does Troy get the dragon and I have to be this weird little goblin?” Britta asked, waving her game piece for emphasis. 

“You picked that one yourself, Britta! And I never get to be the dragon so give me a chance!” He said. 

Annie was always very determined not to lose at these games, but it seemed like she usually did anyways. Jeff was the best at holding his liquor which gave him an advantage, plus he really loved winning. Shirley didn’t drink, so Britta drank for her. Considering she’d been drunk to start this didn’t bode well for her at all. Troy or Abed usually won since they were the only ones that really understood the game. 

They were a few turns in when Jeff rolled a five. He moved his centaur playing piece and landed on a square with a crudely drawn bottle on it, with “Spin The Bottle” written over it in black pen. 

“Did you guys seriously put this on here?” Annie said, moving Jeff’s piece to read it again.

“Obviously,” Troy said. “It’s hilarious. Everyone needs to sit down,”

“I’ll sit here but I’m not letting that bottle decide who gets to kiss me,” Shirley said, pulling a chair out and sitting down.

Abed moved the board over a bit and handed Jeff an empty beer bottle, then took the seat next to him. Jeff surveyed the room. Annie was looking nervous, but maybe a little hopeful. Britta seemed fairly indifferent about the whole thing. He figured he had a 50/50 shot at kissing either of them and that was a risk he was more than willing to take.

The beer bottle spun haphazardly around the wooden table, barely avoiding some of the pieces before slowly coming to a stop. It was dead-set on Abed, who whipped his head to the left and gave Jeff a fairly blank, expectant look, just ready for Jeff to kiss him, no hesitation. Jeff wasn’t sure how to look back, which scared him. 

“Alright guys, why the hell are we even playing spin the bottle. We aren’t thirteen and this is stupid. Honestly we’re all wasted already, can’t we stop playing this dumb game?” Jeff said, suddenly defensive.  
“Looks like someone’s masculinity is too fragile for a kiss from Abed,” Britta teased, tripping over the word “masculinity” and leaning across the table for effect but spilling her own drink in the process. “Plus you suggested this game, Winger,”

“Sorry I feel a little weird about it!” Jeff said, cringing at the agitation in his own voice but choosing to pretend it wasn’t there.

“You shouldn’t Jeff, Abed’s a really good kisser,” Annie said. Troy nodded in solemn agreement, but it seemed like sitting down had hit him hard, his eyes were droopy with liquor and he looked about five minutes from passing out on the table. Abed raised his eyebrows at them both and shot two finger guns. Annie giggled.

“Jeff, you already agreed to the game and spun the bottle, rules are rules. Plus this is probably my only chance to kiss the leading man,” Abed said, his eyes wide and focused on Jeff.

“I am not the star of you damn tv show Abed,” Jeff retorted, and just like that Abed leaned in, putting one hand on Jeff’s thigh to steady himself and using the other to pull his face closer. He pressed his lips gently against Jeff’s with ease, his long fingers still on Jeff’s cheek. Abed’s lips suddenly seemed way too soft and _was that his tongue running along the outside of his teeth?_ He lost track of how long it had been until Abed’s grip on his thigh tightened and Jeff made a sound so embarrassing it shocked him back to reality and he pulled away, breathless. 

Britta smiled in her endlessly irritating, self-satisfied way. “That was way longer than three seconds,” she said. Annie had a smile Jeff was decidedly uncomfortable with, and Troy looked like he was taking mental notes on Abed’s methods, his head swaying slightly where he was propping it up. Shirley was hiding behind her hands, only peeking out when she was sure they were done. 

Abed sat back in his chair and gave Jeff a small smile. He seemed so unfazed that Jeff wasn’t sure if he wanted to smack him or kiss him again, or if it all was just the cheap vodka talking.


	2. Studies in Post-Drinking Game Relationships

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The night after they play spin the bottle, Jeff invites Abed over.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This was really supposed to be a oneshot but inspiration struck so here is a second chapter! I really love these two so I will likely write more in the future but this story is probably finished. Jeff/Abed is a pretty rare pair so I hope everyone else who likes them enjoys this!

At 8:00 exactly, Jeff heard a sharp knock at the door. He opened it up to let Abed in. 

“Is this about us kissing last night?” Abed asked as he walked into the apartment, hanging his jacket next to the lamp Chang had broke that Jeff never bothered getting fixed. 

“Thanks for cutting to the chase.” Jeff sighed.

“Well I figured something was up, you hardly ever invite me to your place. But I really owe you an apology for that,” Abed said. “You weren’t comfortable with it but I did it anyway. I should have just let you be.”

Jeff ignored Abed’s statement. 

“Was I the first guy you ever kissed?” Jeff asked.

“No.” Abed said plainly.

“Goddamnit Abed, I was hoping you wouldn’t say that.”

“So was I the first guy you ever kissed?”

Jeff looked at Abed for a long time, then shrugged.

Abed’s face turned puzzled. “And that made you feel...” he offered.

“I don’t know man, maybe I was really drunk or maybe I just liked it.”

“Well you aren’t going to figure much out tonight, because you’re drunk again.” Abed pointed out.

Jeff rolled his eyes. “I could hardly text you to come over sober, much less see you in person.”

“Are you embarrassed about what happened? Don’t be.” Abed said.

“Easy for you to say, apparently you’re out casually kissing guys all the time.”

“That isn’t what I said, I’ve only kissed-” Abed stopped and counted on his fingers. “Five, not counting Troy during Kickpuncher remakes. Plus I wouldn’t have kissed you if I didn’t really want to do it.”

Jeff considered this for a second. 

He turned to Abed, who had the same expectant look on his face as he did during spin the bottle. Last night Abed had taken him by surprise. Jeff couldn’t stop thinking about it, so he invited Abed over, but the whole day he was scared of all the terrible ways it could go wrong.

He looked at Abed for one second longer before leaning in and kissing him.

Jeff felt like things were going pretty right when Abed kissed him back.

He grabbed a handful of the front of Abed’s t-shirt and pushed him up against the wall, and he felt Abed gasp into him. 

Jeff pulled back and looked at Abed’s face. His lips were wet already and his hair was messed up where Jeff had his hands on it. 

“Is this okay?” Jeff asked. 

“Yes. Don’t stop.” Abed said, breathing heavy before closing the gap between them. 

Jeff grabbed Abed by the wrist. His hand wrapped easily all the way around Abed’s thin arm as he dragged him to the bedroom. Jeff pulled his shoes off, then after a moment of consideration took his shirt off as well. At first Abed just watched, then Jeff narrowed his eyes at him and laid down on the bed. Abed pulled his shoes off, studying Jeff intently. Laying on the bed shirtless, he looked a little more sure of himself, like they’d found some kind of dynamic that Jeff understood. 

Abed left his shirt on the floor and didn’t hesitate to hover over Jeff on the bed. He started with kissing his jawline before moving down his neck slowly, onto his exposed collarbone. Every spot he touched radiated pleasure until it was overwhelming Jeff.

“Holy shit Abed.” he moaned. Abed looked up at him.

“I think we should stop here for now.” Abed said.

“Seriously?” Jeff asked.

“You’re still drunk. It’s one thing for us to make out but if we get naked— that’s a bell you can’t un-ring tomorrow morning.”

“What if I want you to get naked?” Jeff said, feeling admittedly drunk and defiant.

“Oh I want to, I’m holding back for your sake,” Abed traced his thumb across Jeff’s bare chest.

“Okay, well can you at least kiss me again?”

Abed smiled a little. He carefully dropped his weight onto Jeff’s chest and met his lips. The pressure was kind of comforting, and warmth radiated from his skin. 

They kept going for what felt like forever, with Jeff’s hands tracing along the long line of Abed’s spine while Abed’s hand dug into his hair. 

Eventually they both pulled away, out of breath. 

“Do you want me to go now?” Abed asked, sitting back on his heels and fixing his hair with his hands.

“Not really. Do you want to leave?”

Abed shook his head no. “You don’t mind if I stay here tonight?”

“Not at all.” Jeff grinned up at Abed from his pillow.

“Can I have some pants then? I’m not wearing jeans to bed, and I get cold.”

“There are sweatpants in the bottom right drawer.”

Jeff watched intently as Abed unbuttoned his pants and peeled them off, exposing his long legs. He took a pair of gray sweatpants and slid them on. He pulled the drawstring as tight as he could but they still hung loosely around his hipbones. Jeff liked the way Abed looked wearing his clothes so much that it made him a little uncomfortable. Jeff took his pants off too, leaving his boxers on. Abed put his head down next to Jeff’s on the pillow.

“Abed?”

“Yeah Jeff?”

“This is pretty surreal,” He said, looking up at the ceiling. 

“I know, it kind of feels like I’m dreaming.”

Jeff sat up for a minute and poured himself another drink from the bottle on his nightstand. “Y’know, I’ve never been able to be the little spoon before.” He said. 

Abed looked at him “And you want to be?”

“A little bit, yeah.” Jeff laughed, tilting his head back to drain the glass of scotch in one go. 

Abed chuckled when he said that, which made Jeff grin. It wasn’t all that often that Abed really laughed at something, so even if it was a little embarrassing to admit to his decidedly non-masculine desires, the sound made it a lot easier.

“Okay,” Abed said, smiling back at Jeff. “I’m still shorter than you but I think it’ll be fine.” 

Jeff put the glass down and laid on his side, and Abed fit into him like a puzzle piece. 

“Jesus Christ Abed, do you ever eat? I can feel every bone in your body poking into me right now.”

Abed laughed into Jeff’s shoulder from behind him, and Jeff grinned again. Two times within a minute? This was definitely his new personal best. 

“I swear I do eat, I can’t help that I don’t live at the gym like you do though.” Abed said back, running his hand along Jeff’s arm. Abed shifted his legs and one of his knees poked the back of Jeff’s thigh.  
“I feel like you’re stabbing me right now.”Jeff said, wincing.

“Sorry,” Abed whispered, slinging his arm over Jeff and pressing himself even closer into his back. Jeff mostly smelled like scotch but his hair smelled like expensive shampoo, the kind you couldn’t just buy from the grocery store or CVS like Abed did. 

“It’s okay.” Jeff said, taking Abed’s hand in his and studying it until they both fell asleep.

…

The next morning Jeff woke up to the sun shining into the room between the curtains and Abed’s elbow jutting sharply into the back of his neck. He moved to get away from it and Abed blinked his eyes open. 

“Hey, it’s summer,” Jeff realized happily. There was nothing quite like a Sunday like this, with no weight of Monday to follow it, just an open calendar. 

“Cool. Cool cool cool.” Abed said blearily, rubbing the sleep out of his eyes. 

“What do you want to do?” Jeff asked.

“Watch TV all day.” Abed said wistfully.

“Sounds good to me,” Jeff said back, getting up and throwing on a t-shirt and sweatpants. 

Abed raised his eyebrows at him for a second before getting up. Jeff threw him a Greendale shirt that was about two sizes too big on him, and between that and the pants Abed’s frame was drowning in fabric.

…

“Coffee?” Jeff asked. 

“I’m good, thanks. And you have terrible taste in cereal, Jeff,” Abed said, opening Jeff’s kitchen cabinet and taking out a box of plain cheerios. 

“Well we can’t all have the sophisticated palate of a seven year old like you do.”

Abed poured himself a bowl of the cheerios anyway and they sat together on the couch. The first thing that came on when Jeff scrolled through the channels was G.I. Joe, and they left it running for a few episodes. Abed finished his cereal and put the empty bowl on the coffee table. He sat back on the couch much closer to Jeff, leaning his head on Jeff’s shoulder and throwing one of his legs across Jeff’s lap. 

After G.I. Joe they found some kid’s cooking competition to watch, and just as Jeff was getting invested in if this little kid could impress Gordon Ramsey with her seared scallops, Abed’s phone started ringing. 

“It’s Annie,” He said, answering it.

“What’s up Annie?” Abed greeted as he put the phone to his ear.

“Nothing much. Did you stay the night at Jeff’s?”

“Yeah, we were drinking so I couldn’t drive home,” Abed said. His immediate lie and the way he raised his eyebrows at Jeff as he said it took Jeff by surprise. He hadn’t really considered the rest of the study group until that moment.

“Okay all good, just checking up on you.”

“No problem, see you tonight.” Abed said, and ended the call. 

“Thanks for uh, not telling Annie.” Jeff said once Abed had nestled his head back on him. 

“No problem, I didn’t really want to tell her either.”

Jeff wondered exactly what they would even say to the others. You could say they’d hooked up, and that was true, but this part, the next morning with Abed’s legs tangled in his, was a lot harder to describe. Clearly they weren’t dating, and maybe this fell into the friends with benefits category, but Jeff wasn’t so sure about that. 

“Abed, what are we doing?"

“I’m not sure, this isn’t exactly a common movie trope. We can be whatever you want us to be, I guess.” Abed said, rolling the hem of Jeff’s tshirt in between his fingers while he talked.

“Would you tell Troy about… all this?”

“Only if you were okay with it.”

“Are you just going to agree with everything I say, Abed? I’m looking for your opinion here.”

“I don’t have much of an opinion. I liked what happened last night and I like what we’re doing right now. Titles and statuses and all that confuses me, I think I’d rather you figure out what you’re comfortable with.”

Jeff tried to think about what he was comfortable with but the idea alone kind of made him nauseous. Calling Abed his boyfriend seemed like far too much, especially considering he was Jeffrey Winger and he had a severe allergy to commitment.

“How about we just play it by ear? We can keep doing all the stuff you like and we’ll tell the rest of them when the time comes. And I appreciate you looking out for me last night, but next time we don't have to stop."

“Sounds good to me,” Abed smiled and looked up to kiss Jeff on the lips, only for a second. “I think this is going to be a nice summer.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> thanks so much for reading! If you ever wanna chat I'm bestfriendsweekly on tumblr! I hope you're all doing well under lockdown and that this has provided you with some entertainment. Stay safe and watch community!


	3. Deep Conversations 101

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “Abed, why is it that I act so differently around you, but you’re always the same?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys! This oneshot kind of turned into three oneshots. There's an idea for a fourth one out there somewhere, but I just started an AU so I will be focusing on that for a while.

“Abed, why is it that I act so differently around you, but you’re always the same?” Jeff asked while they were watching tv. It was only a couple days into summer, but it seemed like they had spent most of that time together. 

“Do you really think I act the same way with you as I do with everyone else?” Abed asked back, cocking his head to the side. “First of all, I could never do this with anyone else,” he said, gesturing to the position they were in. Currently, Abed was sitting sideways, leaning on the armrest with both his legs and most of his body weight resting on Jeff’s lap.

“What about Troy?” Jeff asked, and Abed sensed what he thought could be jealousy. 

“Troy’s my best friend, but that’s different. I could never-“ he hesitated, trying to find the words to explain him and Jeff’s relationship, “have what we do with Troy. I need you both, sure, but not in the same way.”

“Okay,” Jeff said, sounding a little less nervous now. “But I’m still waiting to hear your take on me.” 

“Well hasn’t there always been something unique between us Jeff? Not that I ever thought it would lead to _this _but you’re not like anyone else I’ve ever met. Whenever we’re alone together it’s like I see another side of you. You’re sarcastic but there’s never any meanness behind it, you’re affectionate, you ask for my opinion on stuff like this and then you really listen. It’s like there’s one Jeff for everybody else, and a different one that’s only for me. One that asks to be the little spoon and gives me his shirts and bought Lucky Charms for me without ever bringing it up. To the rest of the study group, you pretend not to care, and in their hearts they know you do, but they can never be totally sure. Maybe it’s because you don’t feel the need to prove anything to me, but I know you care, I’ve always known. I think that’s what I like the most about being with you, Jeff. I get to see you, the real you, not the performance everyone else gets. And sometimes I get into character, but you’re definitely the better actor of the two of us.”__

__“Abed, have I ever told you that you scare the crap out of me? I seriously think you must be fucking omniscient,” Jeff said, still reeling from the fact that Abed had so easily managed to read all of Jeff’s deepest emotions and desires and insecurities, ones even he didn’t fully understand._ _

__“I’m just good at watching you, that’s all. Thanks for the Lucky Charms though,” Abed said, grabbing the box off the floor where he’d set it down next to him and eating a dry handful of cereal from it._ _

__His dumb mouth was full so Jeff leaned over and kissed the top of his nose instead, right where there was a scar running across it from when he’d broken it in the dreamatorium with Troy. Jeff remembered the facetime call he’d gotten from them asking what they should do, the complete terror he felt when he picked up the phone and all he could see was the blood all over Abed’s face. Even then, the idea of Abed hurting felt like a stab to the heart._ _

__“That was cute,” Abed said when he was done chewing. “It made me feel like we were in a movie,”_ _

__“By the way, there’s buttered noodles here for you too,” Jeff smirked._ _

__Abed grinned at that and shifted his body so he was straddling Jeff. He ran his fingers under Jeff’s chin and lifted his face to meet his. Jeff’s pulled back from the kiss for a second to look Abed in the eyes._ _

__“You taste like marshmallows,”_ _

__“If you don’t like it, I’ll just leave,” Abed teased, half getting up off Jeff._ _

__“No way.” Jeff said sternly, grabbing either side of Abed’s hips between his hands and placing him firmly back in his lap. He grabbed Abed by the hair and guided him into another kiss, this time kind of appreciating the sweet taste._ _

__“Let’s go to my room,” Jeff said a few minutes later, when he couldn’t possibly take the feeling of Abed in his lap and his lips on his mouth and his hands in his hair any longer._ _

__“Sounds good,” Abed said into his ear, before biting at it a little bit._ _

__“You’re weird, Abed,” Jeff said as he did it._ _

__“I know. You liked it though, didn’t you?”_ _

__“Only a little,”_ _

__Abed ran his teeth over his ear again in defiance._ _

__“Bedroom, Abed,”_ _

__Abed got off Jeff so they could move. “I like it when you tell me what to do.” He said, raising his eyebrow before taking Jeff’s hand in his and leading their way to the bed._ _

__Jeff pulled his own shirt off, then Abed’s. He stopped for a second to look Abed up and down. _“A bell you can’t un-ring”_ Jeff thought to himself, remembering what Abed had said to him before. He’s stone cold sober right now, and he’s sure he wants it. Right now, it actually feels more like he needs it. But a tiny part of him couldn’t stop thinking about the fact that Abed was a guy. Jeff was almost mad at Pierce for being at least a little right about him being gay. He wasn’t gay, he was decently sure of that--__

____“You’re looking at me funny.” Abed said, knocking Jeff out of his trance._ _ _ _

____Jeff didn’t really know how to explain himself. But Abed had just told him he likes when Jeff doesn’t have anything to prove. “I mean you know I’ve never, done anything with a guy before, right?”_ _ _ _

____Abed nodded._ _ _ _

____“Well I’m assuming you have,”_ _ _ _

____Abed nodded a second time, and was about to start counting on his fingers again before Jeff stopped him._ _ _ _

____“Okay so you’re going to have to talk me through this,” Jeff said._ _ _ _

____“How about we start slow, and I suck your dick,” Abed says. “Since you’ve done that before,”_ _ _ _

____After all this time, Abed’s candor still throws him every once in a while._ _ _ _

____“Well I’m not gonna say no to that,” Jeff unbuttons his pants and pulls them off, with Abed watching. “You too,” Jeff says, nodding at Abed. He smirks and finishes getting undressed._ _ _ _

____“Are you seriously wearing those fucking heart underwear?” Jeff asks, laughing._ _ _ _

____“Well I had a feeling this was going to happen today,” Abed grins. “You’re wearing your nice underwear too, the ones you had on in the bottle episode,”_ _ _ _

____“Okay you got me there, but your knowledge of my underwear is a little jarring. That time was because me and Britta were supposed to get together that night.”_ _ _ _

____“Yeah, her code name was Gwennifer,”_ _ _ _

____“How’d you know that?!”_ _ _ _

____“Well one I realized you two were having sex it was clearly a super made-up name,” Abed laughs._ _ _ _

____It was a little weird, laughing about him and Britta when he was literally getting undressed in front of Abed, but it was easier than the awkward silence he fell into with girls sometimes. Jeff got on the bed and laid back on his elbows. Abed joined him, slotting one of his legs between Jeff’s and kissing him the same way he had the other night, working his way down Jeff’s neck and stopping on his collarbone. This time between the anticipation of knowing what this was leading up to and whatever the hell Abed was doing with his leg down there, it didn’t take long for Jeff to get hard. Abed pressed a kiss into his lips and looked at Jeff._ _ _ _

____“You’re definitely okay with this?” Abed asked._ _ _ _

____“Yeah I’m more than okay right now, Abed,” Jeff said, already short of breath._ _ _ _

____“Just making sure,” Abed said, and his eyes looked huge, like they were staring into Jeff’s soul. “I still feel like I’m dreaming.”_ _ _ _

____Jeff wasn’t sure how to respond to that, or to the chills it sent down his spine, but Abed moved from Jeff’s chest to the waistband of his underwear and everything else in the world was quickly forgotten. Then suddenly he’d pulled them down and before Jeff could even feel exposed for it Abed’s mouth was on him, and every one of his neurons short-circuited._ _ _ _

____It felt so mind-numbingly good that Jeff did not last nearly as long as he’d like to admit. The feeling of Abed’s mouth on him was so amazing already that when he looked down and saw Abed, his hair all messed up, his eyes closed in pleasure and his already thin cheeks hollowed by the obscene amount of sucking he was doing, it sent him over the edge. Abed swallowed without hesitation, not stopping until Jeff had collapsed against the bed._ _ _ _

____“Holy shit Abed, that was amazing,” Jeff said, still panting._ _ _ _

____“You have a big dick.” Abed said back._ _ _ _

____“Thanks, I think. I want to… try it, but I think you’re gonna have to walk me through.”_ _ _ _

____“Okay,” Abed smiled at him, but his eyes looked darker than Jeff had ever seen them. He wiped his mouth, carefully pulled Jeff’s underwear back up, and sat on the bed. It was only then that Jeff saw how hard Abed was, the outline of it clearly visible. “It’s really not too difficult. All you need to know it don’t use your teeth, and focus on the head. Trying to go too deep just makes you gag and then it won’t be fun for you anymore. Also, breathe through your nose.”_ _ _ _

Jeff was kind of petrified at the idea of it, but the way Abed said everything so plainly almost made it seem doable. No teeth, don’t gag, breathe through your nose. Doesn’t sound too bad. Abed leaned back on the pillows, almost casually. Jeff stopped for a second, studying Abed and the way he looked kind of perfect laying there. He usually thought of Abed as kind of delicate, all thin wrists and thighs that hardly touch and ribs showing through his skin. But right now he looked pretty powerful. Maybe it was the fact that Jeff could see the muscles in his shoulders and arms and _holy shit since when did Abed have abs?_ But maybe it was the fact that he knew in that moment he’d probably do anything Abed asked of him. Abed caught his gaze and raised his eyebrows. 

______“Okay,” Jeff whispered to himself before pulling Abed’s underwear down. His dick was a little shorter than Jeff’s, and skinnier, but not small by any means. Jeff looked up at Abed who gave him a small nod. He put his mouth around the tip and started sucking in the closest imitation he could find of the way Abed had done it._ _ _ _ _ _

______“Cover your teeth with your lips.” Abed said, wincing a little._ _ _ _ _ _

______“Fuck, sorry.” Jeff said, pulling back._ _ _ _ _ _

______“You’re doing fine.” Abed reassured him._ _ _ _ _ _

______From there Jeff was a little less nervous, going as deep as he could until he would feel himself start to gag before moving back up again. At some point one of Abed’s hands found its way into his hair, pulling at it a little without being too forceful._ _ _ _ _ _

______“Jeff,” Abed said, his voice low and almost moaning, “I’m about to come and I didn’t really tell you what to do when that happens.”_ _ _ _ _ _

______Jeff kept going, mostly ignoring everything Abed said that wasn’t his name in that perfect voice. It was kind of surprising when he came but Jeff just breathed through his nose and kept sucking until it was over._ _ _ _ _ _

______“That was really good Jeff. Sorry I didn’t really talk you through much of anything but that was kind of overwhelming.”_ _ _ _ _ _

______“It was actually not as scary as I thought.” Jeff said. But he was kind of exhausted now, so he pulled Abed’s underwear back up and collapsed with his head on Abed’s stomach, feeling it move a little with each breath he took._ _ _ _ _ _

______…_ _ _ _ _ _

______“I like this part a lot.” Abed said. He still only had his underwear on, and looking at them still made Jeff want to laugh a little. His body was curled up against Jeff’s side, with his head laying on Jeff’s chest and a hand resting on his stomach._ _ _ _ _ _

______“Usually the laying around after sex is better than the sex itself, but right now I’m thinking they might be tied.”_ _ _ _ _ _

______“I don’t do the whole laying around thing a lot. I really don’t do the spending the night thing, which I’m assuming I will be tonight since its getting late.”_ _ _ _ _ _

______“If you like it then why don’t you?” Jeff asked. “And you can definitely sleep here.” he added._ _ _ _ _ _

______“I’m not very good at it,” Abed said. “I’m kind of overbearing, which you don’t seem to mind, but most people find it annoying. I just like to be physically close to people, you know? But sometimes I take it too far and basically glue myself to them and forget what personal space is.”_ _ _ _ _ _

______“I definitely don’t mind,” Jeff chimed in, ruffling a hand through Abed’s hair. “I don’t need personal space.”_ _ _ _ _ _

______“I never really know what to say either. Most of the time I talk way too much, which pisses them off. Or I don’t say anything at all, which creeps them out. People like sex with me, at least I think they do--”_ _ _ _ _ _

______“You’re pretty skilled in that department.”_ _ _ _ _ _

______“Thanks. But they don’t want any of the rest from me, so I just have sex then leave. Cuddling, romance, deep conversations, emotional connections and understanding are all things Abed Nadir is not very good for,”_ _ _ _ _ _

______“Well I disagree,” Jeff said. “I think you’ve got a better grasp on all that stuff than you’re giving yourself credit for. I mean this is about to be our second deep conversation of the hour. And you’re kind of the best at cuddling, so anyone who told you otherwise was lying. I won’t pretend I understand you though, because I don’t and I probably never will.”_ _ _ _ _ _

______“It’s okay that you don’t understand me. Troy does most of the time, but even he isn’t always right, and I think he’s the only person who will ever get close. You’re different though, you don’t need to understand me. I can be weird around you and even if it confuses you, you take me for who I am and for some reason you like me anyway.”_ _ _ _ _ _

______Jeff wrapped his arms around Abed and hugged him tight._ _ _ _ _ _

______“Jeff,” Abed wheezed, “You’re sort of crushing me right now.”_ _ _ _ _ _

______“Sorry,” Jeff said, loosening his grip._ _ _ _ _ _

______“It’s okay, if my lungs weren’t collapsing I definitely would have liked it.” He said back, shifting so he could plant a kiss on Jeff’s neck._ _ _ _ _ _

______“Can we just stay here forever?” Jeff asked._ _ _ _ _ _

______“I think I’d like that.”_ _ _ _ _ _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope you guys have enjoyed my little jeff/abed thing here! Thank you so much for reading it, I really appreciate you guys !


	4. Analysis of Relationship-Based Terminology

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I have said I was done with this SO MANY times but you know what fuck it im back. I still had ideas about where this was going and i always leave it for other projects but sometimes I just wanna write jeff and abed

Abed opened the door to the apartment, and behind it Troy was standing there, his arms across his chest.

“Abed, why are you replacing me with Jeff?” He asked.

Abed’s stomach dropped. He knew he’d been delaying the inevitable the past few days, but he had liked living in a world where Troy didn’t have to know what was happening. Mostly because _Abed_ didn’t really know what was happening. He knew Jeff wasn’t going to be happy about this but he didn’t have any other choice in the moment.

“I’m not.” Abed said back.

“Don’t lie to me.”

“I’m not lying Troy. I promise.”

“Then why have you been hanging out with Jeff since summer started?” Troy demanded.

Abed tried to figure out a way to phrase it. “Well do you remember when we had everyone over after finals?”

“Not very well,” Troy said. “I got pretty drunk.”

“Do you remember Jeff spinning the bottle?”

“Yeah you kissed him and—” he stopped, putting the pieces together. “Are you saying you’ve kissed Jeff again since then?”

Abed didn’t know what to say, so he just nodded.

“And other stuff?”

Abed nodded again.

“I don’t believe it,” Troy said, putting his head in his hands and pacing. “you’re really wrinkling my brain right now. Are you and Jeff _dating_ ?”

“I don’t think so. But I’m pretty sure we do all the things people do when they’re dating.” Abed admitted.

“What kind of things?” Troy asked cautiously.

“Making out, and cuddling, and watching tv mostly.”

“And butt stuff?” Troy added, clearly uncomfortable with the question and nervous for the answer.

“Not quite but I feel like it’s getting there.”

Suddenly Annie’s head popped out from behind the bathroom door. Troy and Abed both jumped in surprise.

“What the hell Abed?! Seriously?!”

“Were you listening that whole time?!” Troy yelled back.

“You weren’t the only one noticing he was spending all his time with Jeff!” she said. “Is Jeff taking advantage of you Abed? You can tell us.”

Troy and Annie both looked at Abed for an answer. “He isn’t, I promise. I don’t really know how to explain it to you guys because I’ve never really felt this way about someone before.”

“I mean no offense but I didn’t think Jeff was the type for feelings. And if he was I was kind of expecting them to be for some hot girl.” Troy said.

“Yeah it confused me a little at first too,” Abed said. “But I don’t know how to explain it, Jeff is just different around me.”

Abed watched Annie’s face fall at that part. Somewhere along the line, he’d forgotten Annie’s own feelings for Jeff. There was really something to be said for that whole empathy thing she’d taught him, wasn’t there?

“Annie I’m sorry.” Abed said. “I didn’t want to hurt you. I know you liked him too and—”

Annie wrapped her arms around Abed and buried her face in his shoulder. “Don’t be sorry Abed. All I ever wanted from Jeff was to see him let his guard down. He never did that with me. I wanted to change him, make him be that kind of guy. But you can’t force someone into it. If he can be like that with you… well I guess what I really want then is for you guys to be happy.”

Abed didn’t know what to say, so he just wrapped his arms around Annie. Troy walked over and joined them.

“Just to be clear though, you aren’t replacing me, right?” he asked.

“Never.”

“Good, because I don’t think Jeff would be that fun in the dreamatorium.”

“He definitely wouldn’t be,” Abed said, and he felt Annie laugh against his chest.

After a comfortable few seconds Abed stepped back.

“Can you guys hold off on telling the rest of the group? I wasn’t even really supposed to tell you guys.”

“We won’t,” Annie promised.

“Thanks. I’m gonna call Jeff now.” Abed stepped into the blanket fort and dialed Jeff’s number.

“Hey, Abed,” Jeff said, and Abed stopped for a second to appreciate the way Jeff always sounded a lot nicer when they talked on the phone.

“Don’t be mad but… I told Troy and Annie.”

“Seriously Abed?! I don’t—” Jeff was gearing up to rant before he stopped himself. “You know what? I’m sorry. I’m not mad at you.”

“Promise?”

“Yes.” Jeff said without hesitation. “we couldn’t keep this a secret forever. And it’s kind of shitty to you that I wanted to.”

“I did too,” Abed admitted. “I already told you I don’t really understand relationship stuff.”

Jeff laughed through the phone. “Well I don’t either. So I guess we’re going to have to figure it out.”

“Tonight?”

“Sure. I’m already kind of bored here. See you later.”

“Alright, bye Jeff,” Abed said, hanging up. He stepped out of the blanket fort and Troy and Annie were waiting outside of it, clearly having heard at least one side of the conversation.

“You good buddy?” Troy asked.

“Yeah, we’re gonna talk about it tonight. Thanks for not being upset.”

“Of course I’m not upset,” Troy said, reaching his arm out to do their handshake, which Abed happily reciprocated. “As long as we’re still best friends you should do whatever you want with Jeff.”

“Thanks. Wanna go in the dreamatorium?”

“Sure,” Troy said, pulling Annie along with them as well.

…

“So here’s what we’re gonna do.” Jeff said as he let Abed into the apartment. “We’ll drink until we figure this out.”

Abed shrugged. “Sounds good to me,” he said, pulling the bottle of vodka off the coffee table, uncapping it, and taking a long swig. His face contorted with the taste before he passed it to Jeff.

“You took to that pretty quickly,” Jeff grinned.

“I like drinking with you. I’m just a little worried because we worked in a lot of tropes last time and I don’t want to be repetitive.”

“We won’t be,” Jeff said. “And I won’t put you in a dresser drawer.”

…

“As much as I appreciate the drinking game callback, this isn’t really a game, because there’s no question from you that I wouldn’t answer.” Abed said.

“Okay well then maybe it can just be drinking and asking each other questions.”

“I can do that. You first.”

Jeff watched Abed for a minute, trying to figure out exactly what to ask. “What’d you say to Troy and Annie?”

Abed poured himself a shot and took it. “Maybe we can reconsider making this a drinking game.”

“Answer.”

“I told them what we’ve been doing and that I have feelings for you. And that I think you have feelings for me too but I don’t really know what we are.”

Jeff thought about this for a second, looking at Abed’s wide eyes staring him down from where Abed sat across from him. He opened his mouth to say something else but Abed stopped him.

“My turn now. Do you have feelings for me?”

He spit the question out as fast as he could, his face shifting to worry.

Jeff took another shot, happy the alcohol was numbing how uncomfortable he felt. “Definitely.”

“ _Why?_ ” Abed asked, almost in disbelief.

“That’s a second question.”

“Humor me.”

Jeff thought about it. “Well why wouldn’t I?”

“Because you’re the lead and I’m the outcast, I guess. Or because you’re strong and good looking and charismatic and I’m none of those things.”

“You know I hate when you call yourself the outcast almost as much as I hate when you try to make me your lead. And I dunno Abed, you’re stronger than me in all the ways that matter, and you have your own kind of charisma. As for looks,” Jeff stopped for a second to study Abed’s still face. “I don’t really know what to say about you being a guy. But jesus christ Abed, you’re _striking_. There’s no other word for it. You’re almost hard to look at sometimes.”

Abed bit his lip a little as he studied Jeff. It looked like he was trying to find the words to say, but then he just leaned forward, tilted his head a little and met Jeff’s lips. It wasn’t long, just a second or two. Abed wasn’t some guy he was obsessed with being better than, or a girl he was obsessed with winning over. He was just Abed, all long limbs and an angular face with dark eyes. When he sat back and downed another shot he really _was_ so striking that Jeff almost couldn’t watch his adam’s apple bob or the way his long fingers wrapped around the glass.

“Maybe I was kind of fishing for a compliment with that one, but that doesn’t mean I don’t appreciate it,” Abed grinned.

“I think it’s my turn now. Why in the hell did you kiss me that night?”

“Because I wanted to,” Abed said, tripping over his words a little. It was clear the alcohol was starting to get to him. “I wanted to put one hand on your thigh and the other on your cheek like people do in movies and see if your lips were as soft as they looked. Plus I was almost as drunk as I am right now and feeling kind of bold.”

“Did you want to kiss me _before_ that night?” Jeff asked, trying to pull the meaning out of Abed’s rambling.

“Sure,” Abed said easily. “Plenty of times. You’re the male lead and you’ve got the looks to match.”

“This is getting uncomfortable.” Jeff said.

“I thought that was the whole point. Also, I think it’s my turn again.”

“Hit me."

“Why’d you invite me over the next night?”

“I still don’t entirely know,” Jeff said. “I just kept replaying it over and over in my head. I couldn’t stop thinking about it, couldn’t convince myself I hadn’t enjoyed it.”

“Well I’m happy you did. I was thinking about it too, I felt pretty guilty for doing it.”

“Abed, how’d you know you… _weren’t_ straight?” Jeff asked.

“I’m really not sure,” Abed said. “Even when I was younger I sort of just knew I liked certain people. Gender doesn’t really matter that much to me.”

He was so nonchalant about it that it made Jeff feel kind of crazy. But then again, Abed had always had a way of making him face his irrationality. “What the hell do you mean by that though?”

“Well I find you attractive, right? I like that you’re really tall, because I’ve never been with someone taller than me. And I like your arms, and your chest, and your hair and that you always have just the right amount of stubble. I find plenty of girls attractive too, but obviously not for any of those reasons.”

“I guess that sort of makes sense,” Jeff said. “But am I allowed to like you even if I don’t like other guys?”

Abed gave him a disbelieving look. “I’m pretty sure you definitely like other guys.”

“Name one.”

“Ryan Seacrest, Chris Pratt, you pretend to hate the Dean but you like the attention he gives you, you follow Troy’s Clive Owen tumblr—”

“Alright that’s enough for now. I guess you might be a little bit right.”

“This was fun,” Abed said, taking another shot.

“Always fun to talk a guy into questioning his sexuality,” Jeff said sarcastically, but Abed’s nod of agreement seemed pretty genuine.

…

Abed was slumped up against the wall. “Too drunk,” he muttered. They’d long given up on playing the game.

“Wanna go to bed?” Jeff asked, trying to get Abed’s attention through his drooping eyes.

“Yes.” Abed said, and Jeff tried reaching a hand out to help him up but after a minute of struggle he just picked Abed up and carried him.

Abed was laughing against his chest. “This is nice. Can I be Clone Abed?” He asked, looking up at Jeff.

“Sure you can, but I have no fucking clue what that means,” Jeff answered.

“It means I can tell you all about Real Abed,” he said, reaching a finger up and running it along Jeff’s jawline.

They got to the bed and Jeff let Abed down. He sat up against the pile of pillows and didn’t say anything for a second.

“Clone Abed?” Jeff asked tenatively. He used to hate when Abed did this sort of stuff, but over the years he ‘d grown to accept it. At least this, right now, he understood. They had made some progress with the game, but things still didn’t feel settled. And Jeff sort of wished he could be someone else for this conversation too.

“Hi Jeff.” Abed said as he made a space next to him in the pillows.

“How’s Real Abed doing?

“He’s scared, mostly.”

“Of what?” Jeff asked

“I’m not sure. Mostly just that Real Abed doesn’t understand your feelings. Or his own.”

“Well how do you feel?” Drunk as he was, Abed still blinked at him. “Fine, how does Real Abed feel?” _God_ trying to get a straight answer out of Abed was like pulling teeth sometimes.

“Like watching you is better than TV. And the way you say his name, even when you’re annoyed, actually, _especially_ when you’re annoyed, is his favorite sound in the world. Like he’d rather be the little spoon but would be the big spoon every day for the rest of his life if it meant keeping you around. Because people don’t usually let him stay the night, much less hang around the whole next day then invite him back.” Abed said, avoiding Jeff’s face and grabbing one of his hands instead.

“Well I hope _Real Abed_ ,” Abed nodded in approval. “Knows that I’ve never actually wanted to keep someone around in the morning. I’ve never stood for twenty minutes in the cereal aisle letting a box of fucking Lucky Charms make me question my entire life for anyone else. Maybe this is fucked up, but maybe it’s all we’ve got.”

“I don’t think we can tell the others like that.” Abed said, and Jeff laughed a little. “But I don’t want to be with anyone else, and the thought of seeing you with someone else makes me feel a little sick.”

“Agreed, but I think your sickness is more from the drinking.”

“You might be right.”

“Fuck, Abed, are we really dating? I mean that’s what this is at this point, isn’t it?”

“Pretty much, yeah, at least according to every show ever.” He said. “But I don’t have to call you my boyfriend if you don’t want me to.”

Jeff considered that, thought about the way the word sounded leaving Abed’s mouth. “Let me get back to you on that in the morning.”

“Okay. good night Jeff,” Abed said, shifting in the pile of pillows until he was mostly under the covers and close enough to Jeff to lean into him, kissing him for just a second before passing out entirely.

Jeff stayed awake for a little while longer, running his hand through Abed’s hair and making sure he wasn’t going to start throwing up or anything. The whole time he was wondering what the hell life would be like if Abed called him his boyfriend, and if he started doing the same. He fell asleep like that, figuring he would find out tomorrow.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> thanks for reading! everyone here that enjoys jeff/abed is very special to me thanks for loving this rarepair as much as i do! also im bestfriendsweekly on tumblr so feel free to come say hi!


	5. New Magic Wand Studies

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This goes out to this fanart:  
> https://sirenhiems.tumblr.com/post/619019690488004608/they-put-community-on-netflix-and-my-rare-ship-has
> 
> Just go stare at this for a while. Then read this fic. Then go back and stare at it for a little while longer. Its very important to me that you do this. When I tell you I wrote this whole thing with that picture pulled up on my phone so I could intermittently swoon at it I’m not lying.

_**wanna give me a ride to school? i have to go get some stuff from the film room** _

_**Sure, I can pick you up in half an hour.** _

_**cool, thanks. i know you need to meet with the Dean too** _

_**It’s freaky that you know that.** _

_**not my fault you leave your computer open when you’re in the shower,** _ _**see you soon** _

...

After grabbing a few things from the editing room, Jeff and Abed went into the library together, not saying much. Abed noticed the way Jeff walked a step removed from him when they were out, the way his eyes were darting around.

“I hope this isn’t weird,” Abed said. “But I didn’t really need to get this stuff right now. And I know you’ve got like thirty-five minutes till that meeting. I only called you when I did cause I was bored.”

“So you missed me.” Jeff said, grinning.

“Pure boredom.” Abed said back, raising his eyebrows a little.

As Jeff opened the door Abed was trying to figure out where to sit. Everyone having an unofficial assigned seat was great narratively, but for a moment like this it just made him nervous. Jeff decided for him by sitting on the couch and putting his feet up on the table. Abed pulled the door closed behind him and joined Jeff.

Abed sat down a lot closer to Jeff than he was expecting, and he shot him a look.

“No one’s gonna be in here anytime soon, it’s summer.” Abed said. Jeff nodded, feeling every muscle in his body relax a bit. Abed pulled out a book from his bag and opened it. He pressed his body against Jeff’s, propped the book up on his knee and silently started reading it.

“You really did all this so I could sit and watch you read?”

“Pretty much, yeah. This is exactly what I was doing at the apartment. I just didn’t feel like doing it alone.”

Jeff wasn’t sure whether to be insulted by the fact that Abed would rather spend time reading than paying attention to him or oddly flattered by the way Abed had put a lot of thought into getting them half an hour together. He could’ve just called Jeff and asked him to hang out, like most people do when they’re dating, but this was fine too.

“Alright, what are you reading?” Jeff asked.

Abed flipped the yellowing book to the cover. It was an Choose Your Own Adventure book, called _Space and Beyond_.

“God, I used to love those books as a kid.” Jeff said.

“Me too. Let’s do it together, I’ll start at the beginning.”

Abed flipped back to the first page and started reading. His voice was monotone, but clear, saying each word deliberately, and Jeff found it kind of calming. At the end of each part, Abed would pause and they’d talk over the decision for a second. At first Jeff would look to the book and follow along, but soon he was just closing his eyes and letting Abed’s words wash over him while he pictured the story.

They made it to the end, but Jeff didn’t like the outcome they got so he made Abed go two turns back and choose differently. When they were done, Abed turned his head to look at Jeff, who leaned in and kissed him. Abed took to it immediately, wrapping a hand around the back of Jeff’s neck to pull him closer. It was slow and sweet, and it felt almost casual, like they'd done this a million times before. They traded kisses like that for a minute until remembering where they were, and the fact that even with the doors closed they were still a bit exposed. The library outside was mostly empty, but there were still a few people milling about. They pulled apart, neither of them too happy about it, and Abed checked his watch.

“The Dean will probably be expecting you soon. Can I wait in your car till you’re done?”

“You are so weird Abed.” Jeff said, pulling his car keys from his pocket and handing them over anyway. As they stepped out of the room, Jeff threw an arm over Abed’s shoulder, appreciating how well their bodies fit together. Abed looked up at Jeff’s face and gave him a smile that melted him a little as they walked out of the study room.

They made it about three steps before coming face to face with Troy and Britta, who were clearly coming from dance practice. No one knew what to say, and they all just froze for a second. Abed and Jeff’s eyes were wide, and Abed tilted his head a little as Jeff half- lifted his arm off Abed like that would make it any less obvious what they were doing.

Troy blinked back his shocked face and smiled a little. “I was confused before, but this?” he said, gesturing to the position Jeff and Abed were in, “is actually kind of cute.” Abed nodded happily at Troy’s approval.

“Abed… _Jeff_ …” Britta said.

“Well you see, we’re—” Jeff started, then trailed off a little.

“Dating.” Abed finished for him.

“Why did I think that was a good idea?” Jeff muttered. Troy was unfazed, clearly Abed had kept him updated on things. Britta stood there for a long while without saying anything.

“Well I’m gonna go sit in Jeff’s car.” Abed said, shifting out from under Jeff’s arm. “Troy?”

Troy grinned and moved to join him, but Jeff caught Abed by the shoulder and pulled him back before he could get away.

“Oh no you don’t, you little shit. I won’t let you dump Britta on me.” Jeff said.

“Someone needs to explain to me what the hell is happening.” Britta said, staring at Jeff’s hand where it rested on Abed.

“They’ve been _together_ ,” Troy provided as best he could. “since the night of finals.”

Britta’s eyes widened. “Seriously? Jeez Winger, how much of the study group are you gonna get with?”

Jeff wanted to tell Britta that this was different in a way that wouldn’t offend her, but he knew that was pretty much impossible.

“Are you mad?” Abed asked Britta.

That line switched Britta into therapist mode, and her face softened a little. “Of course not Abed. I’m just a little taken aback.”

Abed seemed to ease up at that. “This was definitely a plot twist, but I think it’s a good one.” He said.

“You already knew about this Troy?” Britta turned.

“For like a week now,” he admitted. “Annie too.”

“Well as your open- minded friend—”

Troy, Abed and Jeff all groaned at that.

“—I support it.” She finished.

Jeff took that as an end to the conversation and, feeling kind of bold, pressed a kiss to the side of Abed’s face, which he accepted, albeit a little stiffly.

“But you better not be sickeningly adorable together,” Britta added.

“I’m sickeningly adorable all on my own.” Abed said back.

“He’s got a point there.” Troy said.

“Alright that’s enough.” Jeff said, putting a hand up. “We’ll talk again later. I need to go convince the Dean to change my grade in New Magic Wand Studies. That was _not_ the blow-off class I was hoping it would be.”

“Can we go hang out in the Lexus now?” Troy asked. Abed jangled the keys in response.

The two of them waved goodbye to Britta and left her standing outside the study room, feeling utterly confused. _”Did that really just happen?”_ she asked herself.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Shoutout of course to sirenhiems on tumblr for making art so FUCKING BEAUTIFUL that I had to write a whole chapter of this fic based on it. This is the ship I cannot leave because it is so rare yet the love yall give me on this fic blows my mind. 
> 
> Magic Wand class is referenced in season 6 but was also an easy reference to New Magic Wand by Tyler, The Creator because it’s a good Jeff/Abed song. ( _You roll the dice, hit a 7, sure you right?_ is an actual fucking line that gives me too many remedial chaos theory vibes)
> 
> Also go watch Intro to Recycled Cinema and bask in the beauty of Jeff and Abed.  
> Thanks so much for reading!!


	6. Intermediate Neighborly Relations

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “Yeah we were cutting to the bedroom before this happened. This is _really_ not what I had scripted for tonight.” Abed added.
> 
> "Not the time, Abed."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> With this chapter, this fic is officially my longest! It is also the longest jeff/abed fic in existence which makes me feel... oddly accomplished? Just happy to know i can pull romance out of any two idiots being adorable together.  
> This chapter also has more smut than any of the others but i labelled it pretty clearly so yall can skip it if you'd like.  
> As always im bestfriendsweekly on tumbr!!

“Hey Abed—” Jeff greeted as he opened his front door.

“I missed you.” Abed interrupted him, getting on his toes and pulling Jeff into a desperate kiss before he could even step into the apartment. Jeff took a step back, grabbing Abed’s face with one hand to hold the kiss, and reached around Abed to slam the door closed.

“Someone came here with a mission.” Jeff laughed once Abed had to stop for air.

“Maybe a little.” Abed admitted, pulling his sweatshirt off and dropping it on the floor. He started with the buttons on Jeff’s shirt, undoing each one frantically. Jeff just watched the way Abed’s fingers worked as fast as they could and how he bit his lip in focus. When he was finished Jeff took the shirt off and let that fall to the ground as well. Abed’s expression didn’t reveal much, but his eyes never left Jeff’s chest, and his stare was making Jeff’s stomach do backflips. He grabbed Abed by the waist and went to take off his t-shirt.

“What’s gotten into you?” Jeff asked as he was lifting the shirt over Abed’s head. “Not that I mind.”

“I like when they do this in movies.”

“It’s contrived.” Jeff said back, throwing Abed’s shirt down next to his.

“Do you want to just cut to the bedroom then?” Abed asked.

“You don’t mind?”

“Not really, the kiss in the doorway’s the best part of the trope anyways.”

Jeff grinned and kissed Abed again, and he leaned in, less rushed this time around. Abed’s hands had found the small of Jeff’s back, pulling him in closer. Jeff wrapped his hand around Abed’s upper arm, feeling the lean muscle there and directing him towards the bedroom.

Suddenly Abed resisted and put a finger to his lips. Jeff, confused, loosened his grip and followed Abed’s gaze to his front door. There were shadows being cast across his floor from under the doorframe, and they could faintly hear a quiet rustling on the other side. They both looked at each other, neither daring to say anything. Abed crept towards the door in that silent way of his, leaning to try and catch a glimpse of the other side.

Abed turned to Jeff, still quiet and his eyes wide in fear.

“Jeffrey, are you there?” The Dean’s voice rang out.

Jeff directed Abed to stand behind the door while he opened it, but not enough that the Dean could take it as an invitation to come inside (which wasn’t an _uncommon_ occurrence).

“Hi Jeffrey. I assume Abed’s somewhere in there as well.”

“He isn’t,” Jeff lied automatically.

“Interesting. Now if it was my choice between the two of them I’d probably pick Troy. Actually, on second thought, Abed’s seems _much_ more likely to be into costumes. Not an easy decision, I guess.”

Jeff shot a glance to Abed, who raised his eyebrows and shrugged. He rolled his eyes and turned back to the Dean.

“Dean, you need to stop stalking me. End of story.” Jeff said.

“Jeffrey I know what I saw. Let me tell _you_ a story.” He said, reaching a hand out towards Jeff’s chest, which he swatted away.

Abed jumped into the doorway behind Jeff, still shirtless. The Dean jumped back for a second in surprise.

“Abed!” Jeff spat.

Abed smiled a little at the way Jeff had said his name. “He’s gearing up to a flashback and I wanna hear it.” He said.

Dean Pelton sizes up Abed’s torso for a long minute before looking Abed in the eye.

“And the costumes part?” Dean asked.

Abed started to nod but Jeff elbowed him, and the Dean moved on.

“It all started almost a week ago.” The Dean said, and Abed waved his hands in front of his face like he was setting a scene. Jeff elbowed him for that too. “As your neighbor, I may or may not notice the guests you have over.”

Jeff went to say something, but Abed reached his hand around and pressed his pointer finger to Jeff’s lips. He sighed and let the Dean continue.

“At the very least, I notice when suddenly Abed seems to be spending the night here. He comes by and I don’t see him leave until late the next day. A neighbor might just be a little curious, Jeffrey. Then yesterday I was making my usual trip to the study room, just to check up on it, make sure none of your personal belongings or stray pieces of Jeff’s hair have been left behind.”

Abed’s eyes widen at that part, but Jeff hardly flinches.

“And what did I see but the two of you cuddled up on the couch? I was a little hurt, I’ll admit it. Then I saw you _kissing_ and that pretty much settled it. This was all before I wrote a note that your ‘Paintball-related carpal tunnel syndrome’ was the only reason you had failed you magic wand class, may I add. Then tonight I saw a _very_ interesting kiss from the camera in the hallway, so I came out here to investigate, and here we are.”

“Dean, if you put half the effort you do following me around into actually running the school, the place probably wouldn’t be such a shitshow.” Jeff said when the Dean was finally done.

Abed smirked and shot a finger gun to Jeff.

“Our relationship is none of your business, so I’m gonna ask you to go. Now.”

“Oh so it’s a _relationship_ huh? As your neighbor, friend, and community college Dean who you share plenty of romantic tension with, I would have appreciated being told about it.”

“There’s no tension between us Dean, and _I_ don’t appreciate being interrupted.” Jeff shot back.

“Yeah we were cutting to the bedroom before this happened. This is _really_ not what I had scripted for tonight.” Abed added.

“Not the time, Abed.”

“Alright well if you don’t want me to join you…”

“We don’t.” Jeff said. Abed nodded.

“… then I guess I’ll just be on my way.” He finished, stealing another glance at the two of them as Jeff slammed the door.

“That was…uncomfortable.” Jeff said once they were sure the Dean had actually left.

“Went better than I expected, honestly. I was kind of afraid he was gonna kill me when he found out.” Abed said.

… [the smut starts here, goes till the next page break. I had a hard time writing this and highkey hate it but I felt like the plot called for it. That doesn’t mean you’ll miss anything genuinely important by skipping it though.]

They’d lost the moment they were in before the Dean had showed up, but seeing Abed, still shirtless but casual as ever only made Jeff want to find it again.

“So what did you have scripted?” he asked.

Judging by the look Abed gave him, it was the right thing to say. Abed led the way to the bedroom, stepping in and immediately undoing his belt and peeling his jeans off his legs as Jeff did the same. Jeff took him by the shoulders and directed him towards the bed, placing a knee on either side of his thighs and kissing him roughly. Abed took it passively, allowing Jeff’s teeth to bite into his lips and his tongue to explore his mouth as he kissed back. His hands started in Jeff’s hair, running his fingers through it before moving down his back, Abed’s short nails leaving scratches on his shoulder blades. Jeff dropped his weight onto Abed’s chest, feeling his erection against his own. Abed moaned into his mouth as Jeff’s hand reached under the waistband of his underwear.

“Good?” Jeff asked.

“I want you to fuck me. Please.” Abed said, short of breath from the pressure of Jeff against his chest. His words were hot on Jeff’s ear, and the pleading voice was a little uncharacteristic.

Jeff lifted himself up for a second, suddenly anxious.

Abed’s face shifted a few times before he spoke. “If you don’t want to do that it’s okay,” he said quickly, trying to backtrack. “I thought this was the next logical step in our relationship but it’s okay if I misread that.” He added.

Jeff looked down at Abed’s body, and his face was looking a kind of blank that Jeff didn’t like. He’d given a couple blowjobs since the first time, but they’d both been stepping around this part.

“I did some research,” Jeff admitted.

“What kind of research?” Abed asked, his face turning from nervous to confused.

“The kind that involves Pornhub categories I have never dared to look at before.”

Abed nodded in understanding. “Is that a yes then? You do want to?”

“God, Abed. Of course it’s a yes.” Jeff sighed, leaning over to pull a condom and lube from his nightstand. Abed raised his eyebrows and kicked his underwear off the foot of the bed.

He put the lube on his fingers, pausing to look at Abed to make sure he was on the right track. Abed shifted himself a bit on the bed and Jeff tentatively pressed a finger into him, feeling the tight sensation around it. When it seemed like he was ready Jeff added another, pleased with himself when he heard the way Abed’s breath hitched.

“Troy asked me if we did butt stuff.” Abed said, his eyes closed and his face half-removed from the situation.

“Abed, if you ever bring up Troy during sex again I’ll kill you. I swear to god, I’ll do it.” Jeff said, his voice serious but his fingers still moving.

Abed blinked his eyes open and looked at Jeff. “Got it.”

After a few minutes Abed nodded and Jeff pushed himself inside him, going as slowly as he could.

“You alright?” Jeff asked, not sure if the face Abed was making was a pained one.

“Yes,” He muttered, his voice wavering. “Better than alright.”

Jeff felt more sure of himself and sped up a little, watched as Abed’s hand moved to his own dick. He started in time with Jeff’s thrusts, before he got to a point where all inhibition was long gone. As he came on both of them, his face shining with sweat and his eyes rolling back into his head for a moment Jeff was overwhelmed by how perfect Abed looked, and it wasn’t long before he came as well.

…

Abed turned his head to look at Jeff’s profile next to him. He felt half sticky and hot and kind of disgusting and half happier than he’s probably ever been. Jeff must have noticed Abed’s eyes on him because turned his face to meet them and grinned a little.

“You look really pretty right now, but I think I need to clean myself off.” Jeff said, shifting to get up.

The way Jeff called him pretty kind of made Abed’s head explode. He wasn’t sure what it was about it, maybe that he wasn’t often told he was good-looking, much less by someone like Jeff. Abed didn’t necessarily think he was ugly, and seeing his face in the mirror didn’t usually bother him, but years of bullying had drilled in that he definitely wasn’t conventionally attractive. There was something to be said for Jeff’s choice of words as well. Pretty had a different weight to it than hot or handsome might’ve. But then again Jeff always had a way with words. It was a gift, one Abed didn’t have, which only made him admire it even more in Jeff. Usually he used it to get what he wanted, bend people to his will, but nowadays Abed was noticing the way Jeff used it to tell him exactly what he needed to hear.

“Can we shower together?” Abed asked before Jeff could leave him on the bed. He wasn’t entirely sure why he suggested it, other than that laying there in Jeff’s bed sounded kind of lonely, and he couldn’t deny it was a trope he’d really like to try out for himself.

Jeff turned back to him, looking down his naked body. “Sounds good.” He said simply.

“Cool cool cool,” Abed said as Jeff motioned for him to come along.

While they were both standing there, waiting a second for the water to heat up, Abed realized he’d never been casually naked with someone like this. It wasn’t as awkward as he’d expected, actually, leaning against the sink and admiring Jeff.

“Why’s your shower so _nice?_ ” Abed asked as he stepped under the water. Jeff’s showerhead was one of those fancy ones, that dropped water like rainfall over your head.

“Well if you haven’t noticed yet I’m freakishly tall.” Jeff smirked, getting in next to Abed and letting the water fall over his face.

He grabbed a bottle of shampoo that looked way more expensive than it needed to be and put a little into his palm. “Turn around,” he said, and Abed obliged as Jeff lathered the soap into his hair. Jeff’s fingers ran over his scalp gently, and Abed leaned into the touch.

“This was a weird night.” Abed said.

“Jesus christ Abed the Dean actually knows about us.” Jeff said like he was realizing it all over again.

“We’re gonna have to talk to Shirley, you know. And Pierce.” Abed said, cringing at the thought. Shirley wasn’t going to be fun, but he figured she’d be alright with it in the end. Pierce finding out that he Jeff actually was attracted to guys couldn’t be anything but an absolute nightmare.

“Don’t even say his name,” Jeff muttered, lightly guiding Abed’s head under the water and rinsing the shampoo.

“You know it doesn’t matter what he thinks, right?” Abed said, half-muffled by the splashing water.

“Of course, it’s Pierce,” Jeff said, “I’m just not looking forward to hearing that letter.”

Abed turned around when Jeff was done and directed Jeff to as well. He passed Abed the shampoo bottle and he started on Jeff’s hair. He had to reach a little to get to the top of his head, steadying himself with his other hand on Jeff’s shoulder.

“Britta’s wasn’t all that bad.” Abed mentioned as the soapy water ran down Jeff’s back.

“I have a feeling mine will be worse,” Jeff said. “and what about you? I bet he’ll have some choice statements for you too.”

“Pierce still doesn’t say my name right,” Abed said as Jeff handed him a bottle of body wash. “nothing he does can offend me.”

Jeff laughed at that, and Abed felt a little accomplished, laughing along. But sometimes in a story like this, Abed fears, the characters see the laughter under warm rainfall and miss the dark clouds looming overhead. He didn’t want it to happen, but sometimes this all felt like the blissful montage before the other shoe drops.

The thought of it made Abed nervous and a little sick, but he figured if it was going to be a montage it may as well be a good one. He looked up and kissed Jeff, the water running into their mouths a little. It was short and nice like it would be on TV, but Jeff’s wide hand gripping his hip made sure Abed never forgot the moment he was in. After a second Jeff pulled away and Abed was sad to lose the contact, but he turned around and Abed started washing his shoulders.

“Jeez, I really scratched you,” Abed said, inspecting the red lines on Jeff’s upper back. “Sorry.”

“Don’t apologize for that.” Jeff said, laughing a little. He turned to face Abed, who let his hands wander up and down Jeff’s arms a few times. He liked Jeff’s arms a lot, he’d decided, and even more he liked the way Jeff was looking at him. After he cleaned Jeff’s chest, he spoke again.

“I’m not entirely sure you’re real,” Jeff said while he stepped further into the water and the soap was washed away. “Maybe I created all this in my mind to cope with how lonely I was.”

Abed didn’t know exactly what to say to that, so he just welcomed Jeff’s touch on his waist and the way it moved up his body, fingers resting on his ribcage. “That sounds more like something I would do, Jeff.” Abed finally answered after a few second’s pause.

Jeff considered that. “I dunno, we both have our fair share of breakdowns. Sometimes I think we’re too much alike to be compatible.”

“Opposites attracting is a lie TV told us.”

“You might be right.” Jeff said, raising his eyebrows.

…

They dried off and went into bed together, and Abed was happy it was a warm enough night that he was only wearing boxers but the fan blowing made it cool enough for them to go under the covers. He was in a mood he’d been in a lot lately, one where every inch of himself had to be touching Jeff at all times. Their legs were tangled together and Abed rested his head on Jeff’s bare chest as he pulled his laptop out to set in front of them.

“Wanna watch a movie?” he suggested, phrasing it like a question even though he had to know Abed would never say no to that.

“Definitely.”

“You pick.” Jeff smiled down at him, and Abed thought about it for only a second.

“An American Werewolf in London.”

“Good choice.” Jeff said, ruffling through Abed’s still-wet hair as he found the movie.

They sat in comfortable silence for most of it, shifting around a little without ever breaking contact.

“These effects are unbelievable, especially considering it was 1981.” Abed said as they watched the transformation scene.

“They are pretty sick. Didn’t the same guy do the Thriller video?”

“Yeah, you’re right.” He grinned.

Sometimes Abed was reminded that Jeff was raised by TV too, that he was usually one of the only people to get his references. It was one of his favorite things about Jeff, and seeing him share Abed’s appreciation for the things he loved made him feel closer to Jeff somehow.

“Well I was alive when this movie came out,” Jeff said. “and I was probably way too young to watch it but I did anyway. I had nightmares for weeks.” He laughed.

“I saw it when I was like 13. Scared the shit out of me too, but I loved it.”

After the movie ended Jeff shut off his laptop and leaned back onto a pillow. Abed squeezed in next to him.

“Good night, Abed.” Jeff said quietly, and partially into Abed’s hair.

“Good night, Jeff.” Abed answered. He left the second part, the _I think I’m in love with you_ part, unsaid. But he thought about it, and kept thinking about it over Jeff’s steady breathing, for a long time before he fell asleep.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If you are still with me a full 6 chapters in i dont know what to say except thank you so so much. Seriously. It makes me so insanely happy that I can just write whatever the fuck I feel like writing and people will actually enjoy it!!
> 
> An American Werewolf in London is actually a great movie and according to the community wiki one of Abed’s favorites. I don’t remember hearing it on the show itself?? but im still gonna call it canon. Just watch the damn movie you will prolly enjoy it and the makeup/practical effects are off the fucking charts. And yes the artist, Rick Baker, actually did do the Thriller music video. According to my bad math Jeff was probably like 7 when it came out. Just really good shit overall thanks for letting me rant here love you guys 😊


	7. Intro to Costume Design

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This was a short thing that didn't fit into the last chapter and i was too lazy to fix up until right now!! I'm working on another Jeff/Abed thing as well and I'm so insanely excited to post it but i want to get it RIGHT and it is killing me atm. so here's this!!

“I’m leaving for class soon, any plans?” Annie asked as she carefully set a binder in her backpack.

“Got some stuff to film, Garrett’s coming over to help. Jeff’s gonna stop by too.”

“Nice, have fun!” Annie said. It seemed like that was going to be it, but then she walked over and hugged Abed, which he wasn’t really expecting. “You seem different lately,” she said as he put his arms around her.

“Bad different or good different?” Abed asked nervously as she pulled away.

“Good different. Definitely good. It’s like the way you are the day after the new season of Inspector Spacetime premieres. I dunno,” she said, adjusting the strings of his hoodie, then looking up at him with big blue eyes. “you just seem so content. It’s nice.”

…

Jeff slowly turned the knob and opened the door to the dreamatorium. There was a green screen up on one of the walls, and Abed was standing against it, monologuing. Garrett was struggling to work the lights and the camera at the same time while Troy leaned with his back against the wall and watched. Jeff walked in and stood next to Troy as Abed continued the take. He was wearing the same wig he had for the Jesus film he’d tried to make, along with the white shirt that was cut low enough that you could see his sternum.

“What the hell is this?” Jeff whispered to Troy.

“I’m not entirely sure. He said they were reshoots for something Starburns wanted him to make. But I think he just likes that wig.” Troy said back.

“Is it weird that I find it kind of hot?” Jeff said, his eyes still fixed on Abed.

“I’m gonna pretend I didn’t hear that.” Troy said, taking a step to the side.

The cameras stopped rolling and Abed made his way over to the two of them, pushing the long hair behind his shoulders. His hand found Jeff’s and laced their fingers together. Jeff wasn’t exactly expecting it, and he didn’t know what to say, so he just squeezed Abed’s hand a little. A small smile filtered across his face as he squeezed back.

“How’s that one look Garrett?” He asked.

“Pretty good,” Garrett said, playing the video back on the camera.

“Cool cool cool. I’ll take everything down later. See you around.”

“Bye guys,” Garrett said in his nasally voice. He nodded as he left, his eyes locking on Jeff and Abed’s hands for a split second before opening the door and slamming his shoulder into it clumsily on the way out.

“I’ve gotta go too,” Troy said. “It’s my mom’s birthday and we’re all gonna go pretend like it isn’t for a while.”

“Have fun.” Abed said, doing their handshake before Troy grinned and left.

“Does Garrett… know about us?” Jeff asked when they were alone.

“Yeah, he doesn’t care. I mean it’s Garrett.”

Jeff shrugged. “I guess you’re right. And not gonna lie, I like the hair,” he added, reaching a hand out to touch it.

Jeff almost couldn’t stomach the way Abed looked up at him as his fingers pulled though the wig. When he noticed the scar sitting at the top of Abed’s nose, he leaned down and kissed it.

As Abed shifted his head to catch Jeff’s lips in a real kiss he realized that _this_ was where Abed had him trapped. Something about him made Jeff care far too much about his happiness. Even worse, most of the time it was dangerously easy to make Abed happy. There was a running list of things in Jeff’s head that he knew Abed liked, and most of the time it was as simple as checking one off, like kissing that stupid scar. With Abed there was no bullshit, nothing passive aggressive, no wondering if he was doing this right. Just an Abed-patented formula of give and take.

Jeff was still considering this as they had sex in the bunk bed, which was exactly as cramped and awkward as it sounded. Abed still had the wig on, and Jeff had noticed he had some subtle makeup on too, just enough to make his eyebrows a little darker and his lashes look a little longer, which only made Jeff fall further into his eyes. He’d become kind of addicted to this part, enough that he was willing to hit his head on the bars of Troy’s bed above him more than a few times while they did it. Jeff was grateful for the fact that Abed was always just as eager as he was. He liked to think he was better at sex with Abed than he had been with any woman, mostly due to the hold Abed had over him. Before it was always a lot more about himself than the girl he was fucking, and them enjoying it felt kind of incidental to his own pleasure. Now it felt like everything he did was to make Abed say Jeff’s name until he dissolved into short, panting breaths. And it was definitely the best sex he’d ever had in his life.

But this led Jeff down a path he was nervous about sometimes, one in which a Jeff Winger who does everything for someone else wasn’t really Jeff Winger at all. It was a thought than ran through his mind, nagging at him, but Abed’s voice usually shut it right up.

…

They’d gotten cleaned up and were getting dressed again, thankfully with enough time before Annie was due to come back. Jeff watched as Abed took off the wig, fixed his hair, wiped his eyes and turned back into himself. The change had been kind of nice, but he liked his Abed, who was quietly, almost imperceptibly different.

“Can you tie my shoes?” Abed asked, kicking around the loose laces on one of his sneakers.

“Tie your shoes?” Jeff questioned.

Abed gave Jeff a look like he was massively dumb. “Well I can do them myself but you’re gonna be standing here all day.”

Jeff shrugged and kneeled down in front of the black converse, tying a bow onto one shoe before moving to the second. He felt a hand petting his hair and looked up.

“Now I just feel like your lapdog, Abed.”

“Your hair’s messed up, just let me fix it.” he said, refusing to move his hand.

Jeff finished the other shoe and stood up. “All done.”

“Thanks.” Abed said, giving him a quick kiss.

They settled on the couch, with nothing much to do but wait for Annie and Troy to get back. Abed curled up on him and rested his head on his chest as Jeff ran his finger along the line of Abed’s neck.

“I don’t think you’re my lapdog. If anything, I’m yours.” Abed said softly.

Jeff chuckled at that. “I would never think for a second that I could boss you around, Abed.”

“You probably could, if you really wanted to.”

“Then I guess it’s a good thing I don’t.” Jeff said back.

Abed didn’t say anything to that, just gave a small smile that Jeff couldn’t quite read and moved so he could lay his head on Jeff’s lap, which was more than enough.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Jabed. that is all. thanks for coming to my ted talk


	8. Finale 101: Love, Hate, and Chicken Fingers

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> its been damn near a month since i updated this because the idea of ending it was literally breaking me inside. but i know it's gotta be over sometime! i have loved writing this so so much and I love every single one of you that's read it.

Jeff had suggested a few times now that they go on a real date, but Abed’s eyes would go wide and he’d shake his head really fast and eventually Jeff would just drop the subject. Even if not everyone knew, Jeff felt like by agreeing that they were dating without going on an _actual_ date, it wasn’t totally true, that they were faking somehow. It didn’t have to be anything crazy, just going out to dinner would’ve been fine with Jeff. Honestly, if it involved anything past the bare minimum of PDA Jeff would probably get scared off as well. He didn’t want some grand gesture, just something that was theirs, so they could be alone doing something other than watching tv and hooking up in his apartment. Not that he didn’t like those things, because he had probably never enjoyed himself more, but without the “dating” part of dating, it felt more like they were just messing around. Jeff didn’t know quite what to think about the fact that for the first time in his life, he wanted things to be about more than messing around. After not getting anywhere with Abed regarding it though, Jeff started to wonder if maybe he just didn’t get that there’s a difference between the two.

…

“Do you wanna go out to dinner tonight?” Jeff asked, figuring he may as well try it again. They were sitting on the couch, his arm wrapped around Abed’s shoulders, and he could feel the way Abed’s muscles tensed when he asked.

“Can we order in?” He asked, keeping his eyes forward and pulling his knees into his chest.

“Why don’t you want to date me?” Jeff asked, trying to catch Abed’s attention before he buried his face between his knees.

“I thought we were dating.” Abed said, partially muffled.

“Sure but we’re not _dating_ dating. You won’t let me take you anywhere.”

“Can we date without the scary parts?”

“What’s scary about going to dinner?”

“I don’t know.” Abed mumbled. “All of it.”

“So we can be together till the second someone else has to see? Or you have to put some effort in?” Jeff shook Abed’s arm till he unfolded himself.

“You’re mad at me?”

“Yeah, actually I am. You said you wanted us to date, I don’t get it.”

“I do, Jeff. I’m happy dating you, five minutes ago everything was perfect.”

“Us watching tv together isn’t _dating_ Abed, and I don’t know how the fuck to explain that to you,” Jeff said, standing up. “I’m not sure how I thought this was gonna turn out.”

Abed got up to face Jeff. “And I’m the one who tried to get a romantic subplot out of you like you didn’t already have a chance at that with Slater, Britta, and Annie then ruin them all. It’s a miracle anyone in the group even likes you. You screw up over and over and they just keep forgiving you.”

“Because you’ve never psychologically terrorized them, right? Never manipulated them? Never, I don’t know, tracked the girl’s periods or stood by filming while the Dean drove the rest of us to insanity? Believe me, you’re damn lucky they talk to you, too. Seriously Abed, I don’t know how I thought you could handle a real relationship when you’re basically ten years old.”

Abed didn't have anything to say to that.

“Trying to facilitate any kind of normal relationship with you is like shoving a square peg through a round hole. I was an idiot for even trying this.”

“Don’t you think,” Abed said slowly, “that if I knew how to be normal, I would be?”

“Yeah, don’t go playing that card,” Jeff shot back, “this is about _us_."

Abed just looked at him and tilted his head a little, not even trying to say anything in response, which only made Jeff angrier. “You’re driving me insane! God, can’t you even argue right?!” Jeff yelled, reaching a hand out and hitting him on the shoulder, enough to make him stagger back a step.

“Get the hell off me.” Abed spat, hitting him back. “and fuck you, Jeff.”

Abed didn’t curse much, and Jeff had never heard him say anything like that with real anger in his eyes. He walked out, slamming the door closed, and Jeff stood there, staring at it until he lost track of time.

…

Jeff spent the next few days holed up in his apartment, drinking alone. He was surprised he hadn’t thrown up hours ago, and he knew his chances of standing up weren’t great right now. This kind of drunk was fun with Abed, but without him it was just depressing. That thought made Jeff pour another drink, just like he had been every time he was reminded of Abed. He took another sip when he realized he’d pretty much created the world’s worst drinking game. It was an easy one to play though, and that was all that really mattered. A drink for when he found one of Abed’s sweatshirts under his couch, and another for the box of Lucky Charms on the counter.

Most of the time when he did this sort of thing he’d put the tv on, just as some background noise to black out to. The one time he’d tried all he could think about was how wrong it felt to have it on without Abed there, sitting pressed up against him, holding one of Jeff’s hands in both of his and playing with it absentmindedly. Abed hadn’t been wrong when he said that he didn’t always have a concept of personal space, and it did get to be a bit much sometimes, but Jeff never said anything, because he knew Abed needed it. Now everything was so quiet and empty, and Jeff felt like half a person without Abed’s legs over his lap, or his hand in Jeff’s hair, or fingers tapping against his thigh.

He switched from a glass to drinking straight from the bottle when he realized that Abed, the same person who would barely even hug when they first met, had such strong feelings for him that he had to be touching him all the time. The more Jeff thought about it, the more he wanted to throw the bottle against the wall. Right now, drunk as he was, it seemed all too obvious that Abed did want to be with him, maybe it was in his own way, but it was a lot more than anyone else had ever given him. And since when had Jeff even cared about Abed being normal anyway? Hell, he’d known Abed for years, he knew the way he was and sure, he got annoyed sometimes, but he’d never resented him for it before. It was more an excuse for Jeff to be insecure and lash out at Abed than anything else.

Abed had liked him, really liked him. _Loved_ him, even, if Jeff had given things a chance to progress that far. And Jeff loved arguing and drinking and using Abed to make himself feel better, and it was all one big mess of feelings that Jeff didn’t think he could ever untangle.

He made his way to his bed, not without a lot of effort, and collapsed onto a pillow. But it was the wrong pillow, because it was the one Abed slept on, and it smelled like him. So Jeff lifted his head up, even though it felt like it weighed a hundred pounds, and tossed the pillow off his bed. It wasn’t long before he passed out, and the bed was cold and empty and Jeff found himself whispering Abed’s name into the mattress like a prayer, as if saying it enough times would summon him back here to make everything alright again.

...

“Wanna talk about it?” Troy asked, sitting down in his chair next to Abed’s.

“Talk about what?” Abed responded flatly, his eyes focused on the tv.

“Well you’ve been replaying this episode for the past three hours.”

“Its a good one.”

In reality it wasn’t, and Troy knew this pretty well. It was just the one where the Evil Inspector and Thoraxis kiss. There isn’t much lead up to it, and after it happens it’s never even brought up again. After the third rewatch Abed decided the lesson had been that sometimes random kisses happen and its better for everyone if you don’t drive yourself crazy making a whole romantic spinoff out if it.

“Abed you’ve hardly moved in three days. Also I’m pretty sure that’s like your sixth bowl of buttered noodles today. And that Shirley bought Jeff that shirt for Christmas.”

“Seventh.” Abed corrected. “They’re starting to make me feel pretty sick.” He added, eating another forkful.

Troy gently grabbed the bowl from Abed’s hands and set it on the table between them.

“Then maybe we can take a break from eating them for a minute.” Troy said slowly, resting a hand on Abed’s arm.

Abed dropped the fork into the bowl and pulled the hem of the tshirt over his face. It was way too big on him, and it still smelled like Jeff, but Abed was acutely aware of the way the scent had been fading.

“So are things... not great right now?”

“They’re fine.”

“F-I-N-E or F-Y-N-E?”

“F-I-N-E” Abed sighed.

“That’s what I figured,” Troy said. “Do you want to tell me what happened?”

“Do you think I’m capable of love?” Abed asked instead.

Troy’s face fell. “Did Jeff say that to you?” He asked, gripping the arms of the chair tightly.

“He didn’t have to say it. Just answer, and don’t lie.”

“Abed I hope you don’t really think that. I know you love me, maybe not romantically or anything, but I’d still bet my life on it.”

“Don’t lie.” Abed repeated.

“I promise you, I’m not. You love me more than anyone else I’ve ever met, Abed, and I know you’re the same way with Jeff. If he can’t see that then you deserve better.”

Abed got out of the chair for the first time in hours and stretched his legs out. “Thanks Troy,” he said, holding his hand out for their handshake. “for being my friend.”

“Always.” Troy said back, doing their handshake before pulling Abed into a hug.

“I think I’m gonna go for a run,” Abed said after they separated. “clear my head a little. And get out of the house for the first time in god knows how long.”

“Sounds good.” Troy grinned. "I hope you find what you're looking for."

...

Abed started with a light jog, getting faster as the apartment building faded behind him. His stomach hurt but the pain in his calves and the sound of his feet hitting the sidewalk balanced it out a little. Running was sort of a secret of his, and he never really knew why. Annie and Troy knew he went for runs occasionally, but he never supplied any more information, and thankfully they never asked. There was just something private about it, about walking outside and taking off until he was so tired he swore he wouldn’t make it back to the apartment. In a way Abed really liked the pain, liked how when things were wearing him out emotionally he could go wear himself out physically, find some symmetry between the two. He ran fairly aimlessly for a long while, vaguely aware of the fact that he was getting near the main road running through Greendale, but all that really mattered was distance. He was forced to pause at a crosswalk, the streetlights and shops of the town surrounding him. Abed hadn’t quite realized how tired he was till he stopped, and he anchored himself in his deep breaths, the sore protest of his muscles, and the exhaustion that left him almost lightheaded.

“At least now I know where the abs come from.” A voice called from behind him.

Abed turned to face Jeff’s smirk. “I think I covered them with pasta.” He deadpanned.

Jeff narrowed his eyes in confusion, then moved past it. “Abed. It’s-- It’s been a long couple days…”

He trailed off a little and Abed waited for him to say something else. When it didn’t come, he walked up to Jeff and rested his head on his shoulder. He hadn’t realized exactly how sweaty his face was till his forehead hit Jeff’s t-shirt, but Jeff didn’t seem bothered.

“I missed you.” Abed whispered. “I told myself I wouldn’t and then I did anyway.”

“Yeah, I missed you too. A lot.” Jeff told him. “And I know it’s cheesy and dumb and doesn’t really count as an apology but I got this for you. I was having a hard time working up the nerve to go see you so I’m happy you’re here. And I’m sorry.” Jeff said, opening a paper bag and pulling out a Choose Your Own Adventure book from the used bookstore down the block.

Abed stepped back enough to take it from Jeff’s hands and read the cover, _“Exiled to Earth”_ , turning it over in his hands a few times. When he looked up Jeff did a double take, trying to figure out if it was a trick of the light or if Abed’s eyes were really watery.

“I’m sorry too,” he said, pulling Jeff into a tight hug. Jeff hugged him back, for longer than was probably socially acceptable on a street corner. But something about a hug from Abed was massively comforting, and he rarely initiated them, so Jeff was going to bask in Abed’s arms crushing his ribcage and his head leaving a sweat mark on his shoulder for as long as he could. After another minute Abed let go and got on his toes to kiss Jeff, light and slow like they had all the time in the world.

“Still dating, right?” He clarified, wide eyes looking a little less sad now.

“Definitely,” Jeff grinned. He leaned over, ready to kiss Abed again when a voice rang out from a few feet away.

“Jeff? Abed? What in God’s name are you two doing?” Shirley asked in shock, pushing a stroller with Ben in it while her other sons followed.

Abed and Jeff stepped apart, unsure of how to explain the situation, until Shirley was distracted by the beeping of a tow truck. They turned down the block and saw Shirley’s minivan being hooked up and dragged away.

“Oh lord, that’s my car!” Shirley yelled. “You two keep an eye on the kids. I’ll be right back and we’re gonna discuss this!” She said with a pointed look before she took off running.

“Do you guys go to school with our mom?” asked one of the kids, Jeff was pretty sure it was Elijah.v

“Yeah, we do.” he said, kneeling down to get eye level with the kid.

“What’s that?” Jordan asked Abed, pointing to the book in his hand.

“It’s a Choose Your Own Adventure book,” Abed said, passing it to him so he could look at the cover. “Want to read it together?”

“Okay!” Jordan said, hopping onto a nearby bench, and Abed sat down next to him. He explained how the book worked, and listened along as Jordan read, helping him through some of the longer words.

Elijah got on the other side of the bench and started asking Jeff questions about his mom and about going to Greendale, then telling him about his school and his teacher and the games he played at recess and the food in the cafeteria. Jeff was happy he was talking enough for the both of them, since he never really understood how to interact with kids anyway. Abed, on the other hand, seemed to know exactly what he was doing. While Jordan was reading Ben started to cry in his stroller, and Abed reached in to pick him up and laid him across his chest. The image of Abed with a baby in his arms and Jordan curled tightly into his side, tapping him to show him the pictures in his book, was so oddly domestic Jeff couldn’t help but love it a little.

“Did you hear me, Mr. Jeff?” a small voice asked him.

Jeff snapped back to Elijah in front of him. “Sorry buddy, what’d you say?”

“I asked why you were kissing him before.”

“Well,” Jeff said, trying to figure out a way to explain this that wouldn’t upset Shirley too much. “Me and Abed are dating. Like how a boy and a girl date, just that we’re both boys.” He looked over Elijah’s head to meet Abed’s eyes, and he nodded in approval.

Elijah considered this for a second. “My friend at school has two mommies.” He supplied. “They’re really nice.”

“Yeah,” Jeff grinned. “That’s sort of the same thing.”

“So do you love him?” Elijah asked, pointing a finger to Abed. “Like...” He stopped to think for a second. “Like people do in movies?”

Abed’s eyes stayed glued to Ben and Jordan but Jeff could see the smile creeping across his face.

“Yeah I do,” Jeff said. “just like people do in movies.”

“That’s nice.” Elijah said, and Jeff wondered if he learned that line from his mom.

“Alright now you’re gonna tell me —“ Shirley said coming back to where they were sitting. “Awh Abed!!” She gushed when she noticed the kids on the bench. “Jordan usually doesn’t take to people so fast. And Ben looks so sweet.”

“I like his book.” Jordan pointed out. “And he likes Star Wars.”

“I do like Star Wars.” Abed confirmed, and Jordan reached out to give him a high five.

“That’s nice, but you’re still going to need to explain to me what’s going on here.” She said, motioning between the two of them.

“We’re together. Probably should have told you earlier but well, we know how you can be about that kind of stuff.” Jeff said.

“Dating together.” Abed added, probably unnecessarily.

Shirley paused for a second, staring at them both, and Elijah and Jordan didn’t say anything, just looked up at her expectantly. “Maybe I haven’t been as accepting in the past, but I’m going to change that. For you two, and for my boys as well. They deserve better.”

“That’s nice to hear,” Jeff said, turning to Abed and smiling a little. “really nice to hear. And if you ever need help with the kids, we’re always around.”

“I think I might take you up on that.” Shirley said. “They really do seem to like you. But for now we need to go home boys, alright?” She told them.

“Bye Mr. Jeff!” Elijah said, surprising him with a hug before jumping off the bench and scampering over to Shirley. Abed put Ben back into the stroller and passed it off to Shirley as she went off to her car.

“Want to come back to the apartment?” Abed asked after a moment of watching Shirley leave, the kids turning to wave to them as the car doors opened.

“Sure, did you run all this way?” Jeff asked. “That’s pretty far, man.”

“Yeah,” Abed said back as they walked towards Jeff’s car. “I was trying to get away from everything, but it only brought me to you.”

“Spent the last few days trying to escape you,” Jeff said, starting the car and avoiding Abed’s face. “It doesn’t work. You’re everywhere I look.”

Abed didn’t say anything to that, even though he knew what Jeff meant, knew all too well. He just laid his hand over Jeff’s forearm where it rested on the console for the whole drive back.

…

“Hey Troy.” Abed greeted as he opened the door.

“How was the run?” Troy asked, still sitting on the couch.

“Pretty good. Found what I was looking for.” Abed said, and Troy looked up to see Jeff hovering in the doorway.

“Nice.” Troy said, but he was only looking at Abed.

“I should probably shower.” Abed said, turning to Jeff. “I’m really sweaty right now. And I haven’t showered in days. Can you just hang out? I’ll be fast.” He promised.

“For sure.” Jeff said, then sat down at the kitchen table.

Abed headed into the bathroom, and the silence in the room only got louder.

“Just cause Abed forgives you doesn’t mean I do.” Troy muttered from the couch after a few more minutes of quiet wrapping around them.

“Hey Troy,” Jeff said, getting up from the table and sitting next to Troy, who shifted away as he sat down. Jeff winced. “You’re right, you’re really right. Cause I broke him and left you with the pieces. But he broke me a little too. And without Abed, well, I don’t exactly have anyone else to pick up my pieces.”

Troy’s face softened a little as he turned to Jeff. “I guess I didn’t think about it that way. You’re both a little self-destructive, I guess.”

“Understatement of the year,” Jeff chuckled. “These past couple hours are the first time in days I haven’t been blackout drunk.”

“Abed was basically comatose in front of the tv that whole time.” Troy told him, and Jeff could only picture it for a second before feeling something in his heart snap. “I think he’s eaten more noodles in the past three days than the entire time I’ve known him.”

“Why?” Jeff asked.

“No clue. You’d have to ask him.”

“Thanks for being around for him, Troy. I don’t deserve him, but you do.”

“I don’t think I deserve him either,” Troy said. “But just remember that the things you say stick to him, alright? And they do some real damage to him, more than most people, I think. You know he loves you, right?”

Jeff whipped his head from the bathroom door back to Troy, but couldn’t find any words to say.

“Whatever you might think it is, I’m telling you right now that it’s love.” Troy continued. “I don’t think I need to tell you not to take that lightly. Or else I’ll probably have to hire a hitman to kill you.”

“Oh I won’t.” Jeff promised, but the word _love_ was tumbling around too fast in his brain.

Troy smiled, and it seemed like they’d come to an understanding about it all. Abed opened the bathroom door, wrapped in a towel and followed by a cloud of steam.

“Thanks for waiting,” he said, stepping into the blanket fort for a minute to change before joining them on the couch. He settled easily between them, and his hand found Jeff’s and laced their fingers together. Jeff squeezed it tight, and Abed squeezed back, a close-lipped smile forming on his face.

“Did you tell Troy about Shirley?” Abed asked.

“What about her?” Troy said back.

“It was a pretty weird coincidence.” Jeff said. “And did you know Abed is weirdly good with kids?”

“I did _not_.” Troy laughed as Abed started telling the story.

As he talked the tension disappeared, and when Abed was talking about the book, and them kissing, and Shirley catching them, Troy looked at Jeff and smiled.

"Did you guys ever tell Pierce?" Troy asked when Abed was finished. Him and Jeff looked at each other in shock.

"We totally forgot about him." Jeff said, suddenly feeling nervous again.

"That's a problem for another day." Abed reassured him. "We can figure it out."

The promise of them figuring it out, together, was plenty for Jeff.

…

The next day Jeff was at his apartment, doing his best to clean up the mess his little bender had left him with. It was starting to look at least a little presentable, and the smell of spilled scotch was almost scrubbed out of the rug when Abed called him.

He picked up and Abed wasted no time making his point. “Okay. I have a real date planned for us. Kind of. Just meet me at the cafeteria in an hour. I’ve got a key, I’ll leave the door unlocked for you.”

“The Greendale cafeteria? Abed, you do know what a date is, right?” Jeff joked.

“Just trust me Jeff.” Abed said, hanging up the phone without anything else.

…

Jeff knocked on the door of the cafeteria, and when Abed opened the door, the smell of chicken fingers and a sense of déjà vu hit him.

“Hi Jeff.” He said with a small smile, and Jeff wondered how he’d thought, even for a second, that he could get over someone who says his name with the quiet reverence Abed does.

“Is this from the mafia episode?” Jeff asked.

Abed grinned at that. “Yeah it is. Good callback, huh?”

He was wearing a plain white t-shirt and dark blue jeans, but there was a nice simplicity to it, and when he lifted the edge of his shirt to wipe the sweat from the hot kitchen off his forehead, Jeff had to remind himself that this was a date, and that throwing Abed against the wall and ripping that shirt off didn’t count as a real date either.

“It’s funny how that seemed like the end of the world,” Jeff mused as they both climbed onto the counter. “considering everything we’ve been through since then.”

“I took it all way too far,” Abed admitted, crossing his legs and grabbing a chicken finger. “but I can’t say I’m upset about how things turned out. If it had gone any differently, we never would have done this the first time.”

“That was a nice night.”

“That’s the night I realized I had a crush on you. Which is why I picked this for our date.”

Jeff’s eyes widened and he almost spit his food out. “ _Abed_ , that was the first year of school.”

“Right near the end of the first season, then we had one hell of a finale.” Abed said, like he couldn’t recognize the weight of his statement.

“So you liked me… for that long?” Jeff asked. “And I didn’t realize?”

“Well I never thought I had a chance with you, so I tried to just shove it to the back of my mind. And I never would’ve made a move on you. But when you spun that bottle, I was seriously hoping it would land on me. Then at least I would’ve known what it was like to kiss you, even if it was only once. Didn’t expect all this though.” Abed said, gesturing with the chicken finger.

“So I could have had this, had _you_ for that long?”

“You wouldn’t have wanted me, I don’t think.”

“I guess not, huh?”

“I don’t know if I would’ve either, not really. I liked you but I knew I couldn’t do all the relationship stuff. It was a lot more fantasy than reality in that respect. Still is, maybe.”

Jeff reached over and rested his hand on Abed’s knee. “This _is_ reality though.”

Abed just shrugged. “I used to run the simulations.”

Jeff couldn’t help but laugh at that. “Jesus Abed, what kind of simulations? Do I even want to know?”

“Not much that we haven’t done in real life. Cuddling, and watching TV together, hanging out in the study room, making out, maybe some Dungeons and Dragons or paintball scenarios if I was in the mood.”

Jeff’s face crept into a smirk. “So you’re telling me your fantasies about us were just mundane crap like that? No zombies? Or spaceships? Or timelines or dimensions?”

“Not really. I guess it is sort of mundane, but I really just like being with you. I don’t need a lot out of life, Jeff. Just you, and the study group, your Netflix account, maybe some buttered noodles.”

“What was the deal with the noodles?” Jeff asked. “If you’re alright saying. Troy told me.”

“I’m not totally sure.” Abed admitted. “They make your stomach hurt pretty fast, which I liked, I guess. And I also sort of wanted to get really fat so you wouldn’t like me anymore.”

“Jesus Abed, that sounds like something I’d do and you know it. But I think it would take more than a few days of noodles to make you anything other than a stick. A really gorgeous stick.” He added.

Abed laughed a little, but there was still sadness behind it. “You’re probably right. I just thought maybe if you didn’t find me attractive anymore I’d feel better about it all.”

“It’d take a lot more than that for me to stop finding you attractive.” Jeff promised. “Did you do the phone sex hotline thing? I won’t tell anyone if you did.”

“I did not.” Abed answered. “But I’d be lying if I said the thought didn’t cross my mind. Are you asking because you did?”

“I tried.” Jeff said. “Was too drunk to even find the fucking phone number, though.”

Abed just looked at him and tilted his head. “It scares me when you drink like that.”

“It scares me when you binge eat noodles till you’re sick and sit in the same chair for three straight days.”

Abed shrugged. “I guess that makes us even.”

“I think it might make us a really bad match.” Jeff laughed. “But I still want to be with you, is that wrong?”

“I wanna be with you too.” Abed said. “I’m just not sure that I _can_.”

“Of course you can, Abed. What’s stopping you?”

“I just don’t know how to date you, Jeff. I don’t know how to date anyone. I really wanna get it right, more than anything. But sometimes I’ll fuck up. A lot of times, probably. The whole thing’s a minefield of expectations I don’t understand and emotions I can’t read. It makes me feel like no matter how much I like you, I can’t be a real boyfriend. Because I just don’t work that way. I’m a square peg, and the whole world’s a round hole. With everything. All the time.” He paused for a second. “Actually, now that I’m saying it out loud that metaphor has some weird connotations. But it’s your metaphor so I’ll stick to it.”

Jeff could tell Abed was trying to force a neutral expression despite the hurt in his eyes and wondered when he’d gotten this good at reading him. “You know I wouldn’t have you any other way, right? I don’t want you to be normal, whatever that even is, and I hate myself for ever saying it. I want _you_ , Abed. I’d take chicken fingers or Lucky Charms or buttered noodles with you over a five star restaurant with anyone else in the world. And I don’t understand how this is supposed to work either. I was trying to fit you in the box of what I thought a ‘real’ relationship was supposed to be, but you’re so much more than that.”

Abed slid the plate to the side and crawled over to sit next to Jeff. He wrapped his hands around one of Jeff’s and leaned into his shoulder, neither of them saying anything for a minute.

“I love you.” Abed whispered, squeezing Jeff’s hand tight between his. It was so quiet that Jeff almost thought he hadn’t heard it right, but there it was, undeniable.

He turned to Abed, just enough to see his face. “I love you too.” Jeff said back, tilting his head to kiss him. He realized, almost belatedly, that he’d never said _“I love you”_ and meant it, not the way Abed did, not the way he meant it right now, like a realization instead of an obligation. And he’d probably keep fucking up, and maybe Abed would too, but the idea of them doing it together made Jeff look forward to it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> thanks so much for reading this fic everyone!! there is still plenty of jabed to come even without spin the bottle, because i don't think i could ever leave them. but until then feel free to come say hi on tumblr, im jabedalien there too!


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